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Ust-Kamenogorsk and Shulba hydro-electric power stations, which are the biggest stations of that kind in Eastern Kazakhstan, should be sold in May 2021.

On December 29, 2020, the government of Kazakhstan approved a Complex Privatization Plan for 2021-2025. Both hydro-power stations have been included in the list of state property that should be sold as soon as possible.

According to the website privatization.gosreestr.kz, Ust-Kamenogorsk and Shulba hydro-electric power stations must be prepared for sale. This pre-selling procedure will last four months, with the first auction already scheduled for May 4. It’s expected that on May 17 the government and potential...

Giorgi Gakharia, prime minister of Georgia, has said today that he will resign because of discord with his team amid the attempt of Georgian authorities to arrest the opposition leader Nika Melia.

Nika Melia has been put into custody by the local court. 

«This man has never respected Georgian laws; on June 20 last year he tried to incite a riot by calling people on to storm the parliament; eventually he was proved to be one of the organizers of that attack. However, this is my strong belief, we can’t prosecute any person if there is a risk of...

Indian Monnet Group may purchase Tau-Ken Temir, silicon plant in Karaganda, according to Nursultan Jienbayev, deputy head of the Karaganda region. While the negotiations are still underway, local officials said that the investor might be considering converting the plant. 

According to Kanat Kudaybergen, chairman of the board of directors of Tau-Ken Samruk, which is the corporate parent for Tau-Ken Temir, a group of technical experts from the investor side visited the plant in early February. However, he’s declined to reveal any details because they might affect the negotiations. 

«Because there is no fixed arrangement with an investor, we are...

According to the airline press service, the rule will help passengers get on board and get off the plane more easily. The size and weight of the luggage won’t be changed, the company said.

«These changes are not something completely different we have today; I mean we are not going to change the size or weight of the luggage. The only difference is the quantity of luggage; passengers will be allowed to carry on only one bag with them. What it would be: a handbag, rucksack or suitcase – people can decide on their own,» said Daniyar Uskenbayev, head...

The incident took place at the Almaty International Airport on February 13, 2021. The aircraft’s pilot Erkin Nauryzbayev has told Kursiv edition what happened that day.

According to the pilot, it was a tough landing because the plane’s pneumatic landing gear was broken.

«We had flown that day on a DeHavilland Q400 model aircraft with P4-Air number. Even though the landing itself was good, the weather conditions were tough and the land surface was covered with ice. However, we had managed to make a landing approach safely as Kazakhstani standards require. There was no violation of the safety rules...

Russia has introduced a 17.5-million-ton quota for wheat, rye, corn and barley export. The new rule will last from February 15 to June 30, 2021. Export to other Eurasian Economic Union member-states will not be limited though, Interfax news agency reported.

As the Russian authority claims, the move is aimed to stabilize flour and bread prices because the grain’s price is soaring.

In addition to restrictive measures, Russia has also introduced a new export tariff. From February 15, exporters pay 25 euro to export one ton of wheat. On March 1 this tariff will double. At the same date, Russia...

Cassational court of Luxembourg has called off the arbitration decision, which required Kazakhstan to pay $500 million. Now, the case should be reconsidered in a court of appeals with renewed staff. 

In August 2017 Moldovan moguls Anatol Stati and his son Gabriel, as well as companies Ascom Group S. A. and Terra Raf Trans Trading Ltd were notified that the arbitration decision about Kazakhstan’s case must be executed in Luxembourg. On December 19, 2019, this decision was confirmed by Luxembourg’s appeal court.

However, in March 2020 Kazakhstan filed a cassational complaint claiming that Luxembourg’s appeals court had failed to examine...

On February 12, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has signed an edict on appointments of the new ambassadors to Armenia, Sweden and Brazil.

Bolat Imanbayev has been appointed as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Kazakhstan to the Republic of Armenia. Earlier he was an ambassador to Malaysia and Brunei-Darussalam.

The former ambassador to Italy, Malta and San-Marion, Sergey Nurtaev will serve as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Kazakhstan to the Kingdom of Sweden. 

Another career diplomat Bolat Nusupov has been appointed as a new head of Kazakhstan’s mission to Brazil.

President Tokayev has also signed an...

As Erlan Zhamaubayev, minister of finance said, the registration and closing procedures for sole entrepreneurs will soon become much easier. Moreover, the ministry is going to remove fees and payments for fiscal data transmission.

According to the official, the Ministry of Finance currently develops two mobile apps at once: E-Salyq Business for sole entrepreneurs and E-Salyq Azamat for all other taxpayers. Both apps should make it easier to work with tax returns and make payments via smartphone. 

Since January this year, land and property taxes in Kazakhstan have been combined in one payment while those who own multi-apartment buildings now...

According to Nariman Abilshaikov, the first deputy of the Atameken entrepreneurs’ chamber, all foreign online retailers should pay taxes in Kazakhstan as the local retailers do. Such kind of fiscal equality will be the next stage in local market development. 

As Abilshaikov noted, because foreign online retailers pay no tax in Kazakhstan, they are able to make their prices lower and take advantage of it. Moreover, it might be an uneasy task to take money back if customers from Kazakhstan no longer want a product they purchased because of its low quality or wrong size.  

Another factor is the...

The country is going to expand its territory covered by 5G networks, Interfax Kazakhstan news agency reported citing Askar Mamin.

«Over five years all regional centers, as well as Nur-Sultan, Almaty, and Shymkent will have been covered by 5G. We are going to invest much more money into data processing and e-commerce. We will also continue to support the digital industry to make it possible for thousands of IT companies to be established,» said Mamin while speaking at the Digital Almaty 2021 international forum. 

According to the prime minister, the IT industry in Kazakhstan may create about...

Vladimir Kim and Oleg Novachuk, who are the key shareholders of KAZ Minerals, have renewed their buyout offer on February 4, 2021. The price of one share has risen from 640 English pence to 780. Moguls want to make an acquisition through Nova Resources B.V. (Bidco), another company they own. Given the new price, KAZ Minerals is currently estimated at £3.7 billion.

Oleg Novalchuk said he was satisfied with the agreement they’ve reached with KAZ Minerals’ Independent Committee. 

«This new expanded offer is a good opportunity for KAZ Minerals shareholders to turn their investments into cash while the price...

The aviation administration of Kazakhstan and SCAT air company want to make the Boeing 737 MAX fly once again. If the airline organizes proper training for its pilots to teach them how to act in the case of an emergency with malfunctioning instrumentation, the plane might be allowed to fly again.

In order to prepare the plane for flights, SCAT engineers along with Boeing representatives have installed new software and made all proper work on aircraft depreservation.

«SCAT pilots have been trained in the international training center and the first test flight will be very soon. At the moment...

According to Autostat, automotive industry data provider, the luxury cars segment in Russia is shrinking. 

As the agency reported, the volume of brand-new luxury cars in 2020 was about 1,114 cars. This figure is 15% less than in 2019, when dealers sold 1,312 of such cars. Experts said that the luxury segment declined more than the rest of the car market in Russia; it decreased by 8%.

In general, Russian customers have bought 387 Mercedes-Benz Maybach S-Class last year, as well as 299 Bentley, 199 Rolls-Royce, 139 Lamborghini, 52 Maserati, 29 Ferrari and nine Aston Martin. The only brand that...

Thousands of trucks and carriages were stuck on the state border between China and Kazakhstan due to strict sanitary control. As the National Chamber of Entrepreneurs named Atameken reported, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs warned its Kazakhstani counterparts that China will keep quarantine measures for the rest of the winter and during spring. 

Currently, more than 8,000 heavy trucks are registered online to cross the border at the Nurly Zhol checkpoint. Thousands of carriages are just abandoned on the railways because they can’t move further. According to Talgat Temirkhanov, deputy chairman of the Atameken, it takes 1.5 hours for...

On January 28 Sadyr Japarov officially became the President of the Kyrgyz Republic. 

After Japarov swore under oath, he obtained the national standard, president’s certificate and special decoration. 

Many Kyrgyz politicians took part in the ceremony. For example, there were former presidents Sooronboy Zheenbekov and Rosa Otunbayeva, speaker of parliament, former presidential candidates, ministers, and foreign diplomats, including Stanislav Zas, secretary-general of the Collective Security Treaty Organization.  

However, Kyrgyz authorities decided not to invite other international leaders as well as media representatives even though the ceremony was translated by the state TV channel.

«We see how fast the...

Aeroflot will stop its regular international flights in March and April due to the ongoing pandemic, the RIA Novosti reports.

«Aeroflot changes its international flights’ map because many countries still maintain restrictive measures amid the pandemic,» the company said.

Starting from March 28, the following destinations from Moscow will be unavailable: Aktau, Aktobe, Alicante, Almaty, Amsterdam, Atyrau, Athens, Baku, Bangkok, Barcelona, Beirut, Berlin, Bishkek, Brussel, Bologna, Budapest, Bucharest, Bukhara, Valencia, Warsaw, Washington, Venice, Vienna, Verona, Vilnius, Gavana, Hamburg, Hannover, Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Denpasar, Dresden, Dublin, Dusseldorf, Erevan, Zagreb, Karaganda, Chisinau, Colombo, Copenhagen, Kostanay, Larnaca, Los-Angeles, Lion, Lisbon, Lublin...

Kazakhstan has obtained observer status in the European Civil Aviation Conference (ECAC) and became the third country from the Commonwealth of the Independent States that joined the ECAC, press service of Kazakhstan’s Committee on Civil Aviation (CCA) reported.

«Civil Aviation Committee and Aviation Administration of Kazakhstan have signed a memorandum on cooperation with the European Civil Aviation Conference. We will cooperate in such areas as flight safety, air security, incidents investigations, environmental protection and other aspects of international civil aviation,» the agency said.

As an observer, Kazakhstan now has the opportunity to discuss a wide range of issues...

Development Bank of Kazakhstan considers its possible participation in the syndicated loan issuing. As the bank’s deputy head Duman Aubakirov said, the loan is intended to provide financial resources needed for the construction of the new gas reprocessing plant in the Kashagan oil field in West Kazakhstan.

«We are considering the issue about bank’s participation in the financing of the new gas plant in Atyrau. This is a syndicated loan from several banks and international institutions. Currently, the examination process is underway,» said Aubakirov at the briefing in Nur-Sultan. 

As the bank official specified, the new plant is...

According to Bolt’s press service, the company is going to expand its work in Kazakhstan. The taxi service, which originated from Estonia and already works in Europe and Africa, is planning to start its operation in Almaty on the first day of next month.

To promote its new taxi service, Bolt wants to reduce tariffs for passengers and take zero fee from drivers. However, this offer is not forever, but for an initial period of six months. Almaty will be the second Kazakhstani town after Nur-Sultan where the Bolt service is available.

«Here in Bolt, we want to make...

The Kazakhstan Professional Football League is ready to ease financial conditions for clubs because of the reduction of their budgets.

The fee for the Championship-2021 will be lower than the fee was in 2020. For top division members, it will be 35 million tenge ($83,650) which is much lower when compared to $119,500 last year; for the First League – 15 million ($35,850) instead of 20 million ($47,800); and for the Second League – 5 million ($11,950) instead of 10 million ($23,900).

According to league officials, the reason for that move is simple – amid the pandemic, the Kazakhstani government...

On January 21 a new rule was set into action that requires drugstores to limit prices for drugs that are used for COVID-19 medical treatment. According to drugstore owners, this rule may lead to a deficit of those drugs as the business is no longer interested in selling them.

As health system officials said, the new rule is designed to prevent a summer scenario when people couldn’t find proper drugs amid the spike of coronavirus.

The rule covers 230 items that have been used in the COVID-19 treatment. It is expected that the price limitation will help make prices lower...

In 2020 the volume of investments in Kazakhstan was 3.4% less than the year before. This is the first time in over five years when the rate of the physical amount of these investments in fixed capital is showing a negative value. 

According to state data on fixed capital investments from 2016 to 2019, the flow of such investments was steady. However, in 2020 it declined.

Roughly 12.3 trillion tenge ($29.2 billion) has been spent over 12 months of 2020 for business development. It is a bit less than in 2019 when 12.5 trillion tenge ($29.7 billion) was invested for...

On January 16, the Committee of State Inspectorate in the Agro-Industrial Complex under the Ministry of Agriculture imposed a temporary ban on importing Azerbaijani tomatoes, Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Agriculture press service reported.

The restrictive measures against the import of Azerbaijani tomatoes were initiated by Kazakhstani authorities due to 17 cases of tomato brown rugose fruit virus (ToBRFV). According to international standards (ISPM), the Azerbaijani counterparts were immediately informed about the case.

Because the Tomato brown rugose fruit virus may lead to a sharp decline in tomato yields by 30-70%, Kazakhstan agricultural officials have decided to impose the ban from January...